M&A in the UK media and marketing services sectors: Q2 2026
M&A activity remains resilient as well-funded acquirers seek opportunities despite investor caution over geopolitical events
72
deals completed
+9%
Moore Kingston Smith Marketing Services Index
58%
deals backed by PE
Our view of the market
After a record-breaking start to 2026, we are not surprised to report a slowdown in M&A activity in the UK’s media and marketing services sectors in Q2. A total of 72 deals were completed last quarter, which represents a 39% decrease from the 118 deals we recorded in Q1.
Investor sentiment in Q2 was no doubt affected by the outbreak of war in the Middle East, and the impact this was expected to have on both the global and UK economies. Towards the end of June more positive signs emerged regarding a lasting cessation of hostilities, with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran, and the Strait of Hormuz starting to reopen, helping to ease concerns over energy markets and global trade. We would have expected this to encourage cautious acquirers to return to the market with renewed enthusiasm. However, the ceasefire remains fragile: at the time of writing the US president is suggesting it “is over”, and while uncertainty reigns, the outlook for the market remains difficult to predict.
Although the wider market was quieter in Q2 2026 than in Q1, the Moore Kingston Smith media corporate finance and tax teams had their busiest quarter ever, completing no fewer than 6 deals in June alone! Our experience indicates that the mid-market is holding up well, perhaps less affected than the mega deals by macro-economic concerns. High-quality, growing businesses remain highly sought after by acquirers.
Quarterly deal volume
Q2 deals by sector
Trending: Performance and media buying
Performance and media buying moved from fourth place in Q1 to first place in Q2 as the favourite marketing services category with acquirers, accounting for 21% of the deals we recorded. The continued appeal of performance marketing reflects growing demand from brands for measurable, accountable marketing spend. By focusing on outcomes such as clicks, leads and sales, performance-led agencies enable clients to track return on investment more effectively and optimise campaign performance. As marketing budgets remain under scrutiny, these capabilities continue to make the sector an attractive target for both strategic and financial acquirers.
In June, London-based Miroma Group acquired a majority stake in US-based Ad Results Media, a creator, audio and performance media agency, marking Miroma’s most significant expansion into the US market to date. Ad Results Media operates as one of the world’s largest buyers of podcast and audio media.
“The acquisition of Ad Results Media by Miroma reflects the ongoing consolidation of the audio and creator media advertising sector. As podcast and audio advertising have matured into established marketing channels, specialist independent agencies have become increasingly attractive acquisition targets for larger holding companies seeking to broaden their service offerings, deepen sector expertise, and strengthen their competitive positioning in high-growth media segments.”
George Hatswell, Corporate Finance Director, Moore Kingston Smith
Q2 2026 deal activity in the marketing services sector
Spotlight on: Martech
In the marketing services sector, while most deals involved the acquisition of traditional service-led agencies, 22% of the deals we recorded in Q2 2026 were technology-led. This is lower than the 26% we recorded in Q1, but demand for technology-first agencies remains strong among the acquirers we work with.
70% of the technology-led transactions we recorded in Q2 related to martech companies – businesses developing and using technology to support with digital marketing strategies, while 30% were adtech.
Notable UK martech deal
In April, Pay-Per-Click software platform, Opteo, acquired Fluent, a London-based AI-driven reporting engine built for performance marketing agencies.
Major holding companies
Notable transactions
Three of the big five global holding companies were on the acquisition trail in Q2. Publicis announced three transactions in the quarter, Havas reported two deals, and Omnicom announced its first acquisition since completing its takeover of rival IPG, as well as a disposal.
In April, Publicis announced the acquisition of global sports marketing and creative agency, 160over90 from WME Group. Arthur Sadoun, CEO of Publicis Groupe, commented: “After building our industry-leading position in identity resolution, commerce, and creators, our next big bet is sport. In the age of AI, it has become one of the most high-value channels for clients, delivering unparalleled cultural relevance, live engagement, and measurable impact.”
Also in April, Publicis acquired UK-based award-winning social media agency, Fabric Social. Moore Kingston Smith’s M&A tax team advised Fabric Social and its founding shareholder on the sale.
In May, Publicis revealed it had entered into an agreement to acquire LiveRamp, a global data collaboration platform, for c. $2.2 billion, in an all-cash transaction. LiveRamp is a quoted company, and therefore the deal remains subject to the approval of its shareholders as well as regulatory consents, with completion expected by the end of this year.
In May, Havas announced the acquisition of French corporate influence communications specialist Agence Format, which will join H/Advisors, Havas’s global strategic advisory communications network.
In June, Havas revealed it had acquired a majority stake in Archrival, a US-based youth-culture and experiential activation agency. The acquisition is expected to expand Havas Play’s offering across sports marketing, live experiences, branded partnerships and creator engagement.
In June, Omnicom acquired Australian customer experience agency, CX Lavender, which had gone into administration in March, following the departure of its founder.
Also in June, Omnicom sold a majority shareholding in its brand activation business, Haygarth, to a management buyout team, led by Haygarth’s CEO Marcus Sandwith. Omnicom retained a minority stake in the business as part of the transaction. Moore Kingston Smith advised the MBO team on the transaction, providing legal, corporate finance and tax advice
Challenger networks
Q1 2026 saw very little M&A activity by the challenger networks, and Q2 continued in the same vein, with none of the serial acquirers we have grown accustomed to reporting on announcing any new transactions.
One new UK group has continued to be on the acquisition trail this year. Brand experience agency, Strata, received a strategic minority investment from Ethos Partners in 2025 aimed at accelerating Strata’s expansion, innovation and integrated service proposition across the sector. Shortly after the investment from Ethos, industry veteran, John Farrell, joined Strata as its new non-executive Chairman, and in January 2026, Strata announced the acquisition of London-based experiential events production agency, Wonderland. That deal was followed up in June with the announcement of the acquisition of We Are Collider, a specialist in experience-led marketing for esports, gaming and consumer engagement. Moore Kingston Smith advised We Are Collider on the transaction, providing corporate finance and tax advice.
Marketing services industry stock market performance
After a difficult and volatile Q1, as global investors reacted to military action in the Middle East, Q2 ended with a much better outlook on geopolitical events, and markets rose as a result. Having ended Q1 5% down, the S&P 500 experienced a significant return to its bull run, ending the quarter up 14%. The FTSE 100 showed only a modest improvement, with a 1% gain during the quarter. The Moore Kingston Smith Marketing Services Index was up 9% across the quarter. Of the 12 companies in the Moore Kingston Smith Marketing Services Index, eight ended the quarter in positive territory.
Having been our worst performer over the last two quarters, Mission was our star performer in Q2. Having seen its share price fall by 21% in a single day at the end of March, off the back of disappointing full year results, it recovered all its losses with the announcement that its directors had been buying Mission shares, signalling their confidence in the long-term prospects for the company. Mission ended Q2 44% up.
Our worst performer in Q2 was Australian group, Enero. During the period it saw no sudden drops in its share price – rather a slow and steady decline – ending the quarter down 30% overall. Market commentators suggested that Enero’s global tech-focused PR agency, Hotwire, continues to face significant challenges, and is likely to see revenue and EBITDA falling in its global segments. Investors also focused on the recent decline in Enero’s return on capital employed, which at c. 4% is underperforming the media industry average of 8% and signals that it is facing competitive margin pressure.
Moore Kingston Smith Marketing Services Index Q2 2026
Private equity
Of the 72 transactions we recorded in Q2, 58% involved private equity investment, either directly or via an existing portfolio company. This is higher than the 54% level we saw in the last two quarters and is the highest percentage we have seen since Q1 2025. We had anticipated that PE houses, whose hopes for further UK interest rate cuts have receded because of the situation in the Middle East, might scale back their activity, but thus far it appears that their appetite for deals is holding up better than that of the trade acquirers.
Percentage of PE-backed deals
Notable UK PE-backed deals
In June, UK PE house, Ethos Partners, announced it had made a significant investment in influencer marketing agency, House of Marketers. In 2025 Ethos invested in Strata, which launched a strategy to grow by acquisition, following that investment. Strata’s chairman, John Farrell, has now also been appointed as chairman of House of Marketers. We would not be surprised to see House of Marketers follow Strata’s course and start to look for acquisitions of its own in the coming months.
In May, specialist healthcare communications group, Bioscript Group, which is backed by Sovereign Capital Partners, announced it had completed the acquisition of Triducive Partners, a consultancy that helps pharmaceutical companies gather and publish expert clinical opinions to support the adoption of new treatments. Triducive is the fifth acquisition completed by Bioscript since Sovereign invested in the business in 2021.
In April, Manchester-headquartered digital agency, Glass Atlas, which is backed by Foresight, announced it had acquired Hull-based Summit, a consultancy specialising in retail and e-commerce.
TV, film and entertainment
Within the TV, film and entertainment sector, music deals proved to be most popular with acquirers in Q2, accounting for 22% of the deals we recorded.
Content and technology deals were the most prominent in Q2, each accounting for 38% of the transactions we recorded in this space, with production services deals accounting for the remainder.
Notable UK TV, film and entertainment deals
In June, Trafalgar Entertainment Group acquired London Theatre Company, which owns the Bridge Theatre, the iconic venue opened in 2017 by the former National Theatre duo Nicholas Hytner and Nick Starr, and the Lightroom, which hosts immersive entertainment shows. Moore Kingston Smith acted as lead M&A adviser and provided tax and valuation support to London Theatre Company throughout the transaction.
In April, Sony Interactive Entertainment, the company behind the PlayStation brand, announced it was acquiring the UK’s Cinemersive Labs, a specialist in computer vision and machine learning, to enhance Sony’s efforts in advancing state of the art visual computing within games.
Q2 2026 deal activity in the TV, film and entertainment sector
Publishing
Consumer publishing was in the top spot in Q2, representing 46% of all the publishing deals we recorded. B2B publishing was in second place with 39% and academic and professional publishing accounted for the remainder.
Notable UK publishing deals
The long battle between rival acquirers over The Telegraph finally ended in Q2, with German publisher Axel Springer completing its £575 million takeover of the UK media group at the end of June.
Also in June, global academic and professional publisher, Wiley, acquired UK social sciences journal publisher, Emerald Publishing, from Cambridge Information Group in an all-cash transaction valued at £337 million.
Q2 2026 deal activity in the publishing sector
Outlook
Following an exceptionally strong start to 2026, M&A activity across the UK’s media and marketing services sectors eased during Q2, largely in line with expectations as geopolitical uncertainty weighed on market confidence and slowed the pace of dealmaking. While transaction volumes fell back from the three-year high recorded in Q1, the underlying drivers of activity remained unchanged, with businesses continuing to pursue acquisitions that strengthen their digital, data, AI and specialist media capabilities.
Looking ahead, if we have seen the end of the conflict in the Middle East, then this should provide a more supportive backdrop for deal activity during Q3. However, while uncertainty exists regarding the fragility of the truce, economic conditions remain mixed and financing costs will continue to present challenges for some transactions. Strategic buyers and private equity investors continue to have a strong appetite for quality assets, and the long-term drivers of consolidation across the sector remain firmly in place. As a result, we hope that deal activity will pick up during the second half of the year, particularly for businesses with strong growth potential, differentiated capabilities and technology-enabled service offerings.
Paul Winterflood, Corporate Finance Partner at Moore Kingston Smith, comments:
“While M&A activity has slowed overall, the mid-market has held up very well with numerous well-funded acquirers searching for high-quality opportunities. In particular, activity and acquirer interest is strong across social, experiential, live events, media buying and performance. Our media M&A team is busier than we have ever been, so we continue to be optimistic for the remainder of the year despite the macro volatility.”
Moore Kingston Smith media M&A highlights
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Methodology
Moore Kingston Smith has analysed M&A transactions involving a UK buyer and/or UK seller where the target company is classified as operating in marketing services, publishing, or TV, film & entertainment. Within these sectors, businesses are further classified into sub-categories.
The research is primarily based on data extracted from Pitchbook, supplemented by publicly available information from industry and company sources where appropriate. The research aims to capture all transactions that fall within the stated criteria, although it is possible that some qualifying transactions may not have been identified.
